Tanzhe Temple

A local saying goes that "the history of Tanzhe Temple is earlier than that of Beijing City." Renowned for its age, this temple dates back 1,600 years when it was called Jiafusi, or the Temple of Auspicious Fortune. During the Tang Dynasty, it was renamed Longquan, or Dragon Spring, because of the pool behind the temple. It later assumed its present title, which means Pool and Wild Mulberry.

The temple is built on a hillside and consists of various pavilions, prayer halls, courtyards and a group of pagodas dating from the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties.

Tanzhe Temple is located at the foot of Tanzhe mountain in the southeast corner of Mentougou, a western suburb of Beijing, located about 41km from Fuchengmen. Nestled against ¡°Precious Pearl Peak¡± Tanzhe Temple faces south with its back to the north. Nine tall mountain peaks stand guard around the ancient temple. Starting from the East, the peaks have names as colorful and various as their scenery: "Returning Dragon Peak," "Distant Tiger Peak," "Hold Up the Sun Peak," "Violet and Emerald Peak," "Gathering Clouds Peak," "Jade Necklace Peak," "Hold Up the Moon Peak," "King Appearing Peak," and "Lotus Blossom Peak.
"Names like these are certain to peak the interest of even the most jaded traveler!

These nine mountains have been likened to nine huge dragons surrounding and protecting "Precious Pearl Peak" and the ancient monastery nestled at its southern foot. The nine tall peaks block the bitterly cold northwest wind and create a warm, moist atmosphere. In this exceedingly beautiful environment thick with lush vegetation, ancient trees and rare flowers thrive in multitudes.

The Temple buildings are built in pleasingly asymmetric harmony with the features of the mountains. The Forbidden City in Beijing has 9999 rooms, and during its height of prosperity in the Qing Dynasty, Tanzhe Temple had 999 Rooms. While Tanzhe Temple in some ways resembles a miniature Forbidden City, it is said that in the early Ming Dynasty when the Forbidden City was undergoing renovation, the architects of the Forbidden City actually used Tanzhe Temple as a model.

In the early days after the Communist Revolution in '49 a number of the halls that had fallen into disrepair were torn down and some new dormitories were built. Today, Tanzhe Temple has 943 rooms, of which 638 were part of the original complex. The architecture preserves the styles of the Ming and Qing periods and totally embodies the aesthetic principles of ancient China. The complex is organized around a single north-south axis. The left and right sides of the complex are basically symmetrical and gives the temple complex an appearance of order, clearly demarcating the hierarchy of the buildings. The architectural forms in the temple include halls, pavilions, mansions, towers, and altars, of all descriptions.

Tanzhe temple is not only a site of historical human interest; it is also a site of great natural beauty. Each season brings its own colors to the landscape. Dawn, noon, dusk, and night each cast their own indelible subtleties upon the temple grounds. By the time of the Qing Dynasty, the fame of the "Beauty of Tanzhe" had spread far and wide.

Tanzhe Temple was established in the Western Jin Dynasty and today has close to 1700 years of history. It was the first Buddhist temple constructed in the Beijing area. The Temple was given a new name by almost every successive dynasty, but because there was a "dragon pool" located behind the temple, and there were silkworm thorn trees on the mountaintop, it has always been called Tanzhe or "Dragon Pool Thorn Temple.".

Over the years, Tanzhe temple has been known for its long history, magnificent architecture, exquisite scenery, and mysterious legends. It has received the patronage of rulers throughout the centuries. Ever since Emperor Xizong of the Jin Dynasty, the emperors of every dynasty have come to Tanzhe Temple to venerate the Buddha, enjoy the landscape, and make valuable contributions to renovate and expand the Temple complex. Princes, dukes, and ministers, empresses and concubines, all came in succession one after another to donate large sums of money to the temple.

Their innumerable contributions poured into the temple all year round and provided meals for the monks, numerous impromptu temple gatherings for the common folk, went into a fund for purchasing real estate, and were an important source that paid for the enormous day-to-day expenses of the Temple. In the Qing Dynasty, Tanzhe Temple reached its pinnacle in terms of the scale of its grounds and property, as well as its religious and political influence. Particularly because of the order of emperor Kangxi to expand the Temple, the Temple became the most important Imperial Temple. Tanzhe Temple is an important temple in Mahayana Buddhism,

For a long period of time, ever since the Jin Dynasty, Tanzhe Temple has put forth a large number of monks, famous throughout history for their great virtue. They traveled far and wide to research Buddhism, to carry forward Buddhist doctrine, for the expansion and upkeep of Tanzhe temple, to bring prosperity to the temple, put forth their greatest efforts to contribute to the Temple, and their names were passed on down through the generations in the "Classic of the Great Monks." Because of the political power and prestige that the Temple enjoyed, the enormous Temple estate, and the Temple's high standing in the ranks of Buddhism, it came to be said that it was the "First Temple of Beijing."

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the People's Government made the Temple a protected park, and it became a favorite tourist destination. On Oct. 28 1957 it was classified as one of Beijing's first tier cultural relics protection sites. In 1978 the Beijing Municipal government allocated funds to the Temple to begin large-scale renovations. On August 8, 1980, Tanzhe Temple opened again to the public, and in early 1997, with the approval of the government, monks once again returned to live and revive the Temple as an active Buddhist place of worship. On June 6, 2001, the Chinese State Department classified Tanzhe Temple as a National Historic Protected Area.

Today, Tanzhe temple's majestic sanctuaries, secluded courtyards, halls, altars, and rooms each possess their own rooms, pavilions, and towers of transcendent beauty, carved from the fragrant wood of ancient trees. Rock gardens, flowers, and bamboo groves are scattered throughout the grounds against a background of flowing water, red walls, and green tile roofs. The flying awnings of the roofs echo among the cypresses and pines, the buildings have been completely renovated to their former dignified and stately magnificence.

The complex is extensive, and is said to have provided a model for the layout of the Forbidden City. Above and to the right of the main courtyard lies a rare stupa yard (TaYuan), with stone monuments built in different styles over a period of several centuries and housing the remains of eminent monks.

Tanzhe Temple also has some other features. The bed of its former Dragon Pool, which has dried up, sits on the hill at the back of the temple. The zh¨¨ trees (Cudrania tricuspidata or Wild Mulberry), now few in number, are located in the temple as well. Their number has dwindled shockingly from the original thousand or so. There are also persimmon trees, as well as a stand of bamboo.

Tanzhe Temple has seen numerous monks practice their Buddhist art for the rest of their lives here, thus leaving many pagoda tombs in different styles close by the temple. Probably the best known is the one of Princess of Miaoyan, daughter of Kublai Khan, of the Yuan Dynasty. In order to redeem her father from killing so many people in battles, she converted herself to Buddhism, and spent the rest of her life here. Her pagoda tomb is a solid brick five-storey construction with elaborate eaves, with a smaller pagoda on each side for company. 
 

As a cultural resort with a long history, the temple always attracts many tourists from home and abroad.

Travel tips:

Admission: 35 yuan

Tel: 010-6086-2505

Opening time: 8:00 to 17:30 in summer and 8:30-16:30 in winter.

Website: http://www.tanzhesi.com.cn/

How to get there:

The temple is easily accessible by taking bus no. 931 from the PingGuoYuan subway stop (at the west end of line one). Bus runs daily 7am-5:30pm, about every 30 minutes. Journey time is about 1 hour. Once at the subway stop, take exit D, turn right and continue straight a few minutes to the bus station; take the plain red and beige, rather than the red and yellow zhi version of the bus.

At weekends, the no. 7 tourist bus runs from the north east corner of QianMen (Sat-Sun 7am-8:30am, every 30 minutes; about 50 yuan), and includes a stop at the ShiHua Caves. April 15 and October 15.